In the next big domino to fall, the Milwaukee Brewers just traded ace Zack Greinke to the Los Angeles Angels, according to multiple reports. Greinke, free agent at the end of this year, nets the Brewers shortstop prospect Jean Segura and a couple AA pitchers. Segura, 22, is solidly a top 100 prospect, so, depending on the identity of the two pitching prospects, this could be a huge haul for the Brewers.
The Angels were never seriously involved with either of Ryan Dempster or Matt Garza, so the market for them is not hurt by this move. Indeed, many of the suitors for those pitchers *were* interested in Greinke – most notably, the Braves, and possibly the Dodgers – so the move is actually good news for the Cubs (foreign feeling, I know).
Adding in the fact that the Brewers may have gotten a ton for a two-month rental of Greinke, and things once again look modestly brighter for the Cubs – assuming they can actually trade anybody.
UPDATE: Wow. The two pitchers in the deal are Johnny Hellweg, 23, and Ariel Pena, 23, each of whom was a top 10 prospect in the system (according to both BA and BP) going into 2012, and each has pitched fairly well at AA this year. That’s just a huge, huge haul for the Brewers.